Is the race for Ohio secretary of state already underway? Ohio
Sen. Nina Turner, who is considering a run against Secretary of State
Jon Husted in 2014, says she will introduce legislation to protect voters against Republican efforts to limit ballot access. She also criticized Husted for how he handled the 2012 election, which CityBeat covered here. Husted responded by asking Turner to “dial down political rhetoric.”

Build Our New Bridge Now, an organization dedicated to building the Brent Spence Bridge, says the best approach is private financing.
The organization claims a public-private partnership is the only way to
get the bridge built by 2018, rather than 2022. But critics are worried
the partnership and private financing would lead to tolls.

The Hamilton County Board of Commissioners threw out
a Metropolitan Sewer District competitive bidding policy yesterday. The
policy, which was originally passed by City Council, was called unfair
and illegal by county commissioners due to apprenticeship requirements and rules that favor contractors within city limits. Councilman Chris Seelbach is now pushing for compromise for the rules.

Three Cincinnati-area hospitals are among the best in the nation,
according to new rankings from Healthgrades. The winners: Christ
Hospital, Bethesda North Hospital and St. Elizabeth Healthcare-Edgewood.

Democrat David Mann, former Cincinnati mayor and congressman, may re-enter politics with an attempt at City Council.

In its 2013 State of Tobacco report, the American Lung Association gave Ohio an F for anti-smoking policies.
The organization said the state is doing a poor job by relying
exclusively on federal money for its $3.3 million anti-tobacco program.
The Centers for Disease Control says Ohio should be spending $145
million.

The Air Force is gearing up for massive spending cuts currently set to kick in March. The cuts will likely affect Wright-Patterson Air Force Base.

Dennis Kucinich, who used to serve in the U.S. House of Representatives, will soon appear on Fox News as a regular contributor.

Ohio Secretary of State Jon Husted is pushing local election officials to begin investigating legitimate cases of voter fraud or suppression. He also vowed to continue pushing for uniform voting hours and redistricting. During election season, Husted developed a bad reputation around the nation for suppressive tactics, which CityBeat covered here, but it seems he’s now taking a more moderate tone.

It looks like in-person early voting didn’t rev up the “African-American … voter turnout machine,” as Franklin County GOP Chairman Doug Preisse claimed, after all. New numbers show in-person early voting was

With voter approval, Washington state embraces new freedoms

This morning, social conservatives around the world dug
themselves into Armageddon-resistant bunkers, preparing for what they
knew was coming. Today, marijuana and same-sex marriage were
being legalized in Washington state.

But the bunkers may have been a waste of time and money,
considering the end of the world didn’t occur. In fact, it seems like a lot
of people are happy with the legal changes, which voters approved on
Nov. 6.

From the perspective of this CityBeat writer, same-sex marriage would be great. It’s something I wrote about extensively before (“The Evolution of Equality,”
Nov. 28 issue). As a refresher, not only does same-sex marriage bring a
host of benefits to same-sex couples, but it also produces economic
benefits for everyone. A recent study from Bill
LaFayette, founder of Regionomics LLC, found that legalizing gay
marriage would grow Ohio’s gross domestic product, which measures
economic worth, by $100-$126 million within three years.

Marijuana has similar benefits. Not only does it give
people the freedom to put a relatively harmless plant into their bodies,
but it also provides a big boon to state budgets. For Washington, it’s
estimated the marijuana tax will bring in as much as $500 million a
year.

Legalization also creates jobs and economic growth as
businesses pop up to sell the product and customers buy the plant to
toke up. Washington State’s Office of Financial Management estimates the
marijuana market will be worth about $1 billion in the state.
Considering the state is about 2 percent of the U.S. population, that
could be extrapolated to indicate a potential $50 billion nationwide
market.

Still, public use of marijuana and driving while
intoxicated remain illegal. In a press conference Wednesday, Seattle
City Attorney Pete Holmes said, “If you're smoking in plain public view, you're
subject to a ticket. … Initiative 502 uses the alcohol model. If
drinking in public is disallowed, so is smoking marijuana in public.”

The Seattle Police Department (SPD) seems a bit
friendlier. In an email today, SPD told officers to only give verbal
warnings until further notice. The warnings should essentially tell
people to take their marijuana inside, or, as SPD spokesperson Jonah
Spangenthal-Lee put it on the SPD Blotter,
“The police department believes that, under state law, you may
responsibly get baked, order some pizzas and enjoy a ‘Lord of the Rings’
marathon in the privacy of your own home, if you want to.”

The Washington law also faces possible federal resistance.
Even though the state legalized pot, the drug is still illegal under
federal law. That means the feds can still shut down marijuana
businesses and arrest buyers, just like they have with legal medical marijuana
dispensaries in the past.

In fact, maybe the limitations are what’s keeping the
apocalypse at bay. Maybe social conservatives will get to make use of
those bunkers if the rest of the country catches on to Washington’s
example.

America is a country at war. While the war in Iraq
ostensibly drew down in December 2011, the United States has been
quagmired in a war in Afghanistan for more than a decade.

But we're also in the midst of a number of other wars — cultural wars. It started with Nixon’s War on Drugs, then quickly escalated.

President Barack Obama’s environmental regulations on coal
mining caused proponents to claim he had declared a War on Coal. The
Affordable Care Act’s mandate that companies pay for employee
contraception caused many faith groups to claim a War on Religion.

Statements from Republican politicians about “legitimate
rape” and “binders full of women” caused some Democrats to claim the GOP
had declared a War on Women.

And the ever-vigilant conspiracists news hounds at FOX
News have exposed a scheme by Jesus-hating liberals to wage a War on
Christmas for trying to remove constitutionally questionable dolled-up
trees and pastoral scenes of babies in unsuitable barn-life cribbery
faith-based displays from public property.

But by far the most heinous altercation being waged
originated with Republican Ohio Senate President Tom Niehaus, who has
declared a War on Babies.

As first reported by The Enquirer, conservative groups
this week sent out a press release vilifying Niehaus for killing tons of babies in a
mass effort to wipe out the state’s youth population a 17-month old bill
that would give Ohio one of the strictest abortion laws in the nation.

Niehaus moved the so-called Heartbeat Bill — which would
ban all abortions after the first detectable fetal heartbeat — from the
Health Committee to the Rules and Reference Committee to avoid a forced
vote on the legislation. He also removed staunch anti-abortion Senators
Keith Faber and Shannon Jones from that committee.

“I’m shocked by Tom Niehaus’ war on pro-life women,” wroteLori
Viars in the news release. Viars is the vice president of Warren County
Right to Life and vice chair of Warren County Republican Party.

Viars called for Republicans to remove Niehaus from Senate
leadership. Niehaus is term-limited and will not continue on in office
after this year.

Niehaus blamed Romney’s loss for his decision to kill the
bill, saying that the Republican’s victory would have increased the
likelihood of a U.S. Supreme Court lineup that would uphold it against a
likely challenge.

City Manager's 2013 budget proposal must be approved by council, mayor

City Manager Milton Dohoney Jr. unveiled his 2013 budget plan at a press conference today. The proposal, which must be approved by City Council and
the mayor, seeks to close a $34 million deficit while avoiding major cuts
and layoffs. The proposed budget will only set the city’s course until
mid-June, when the city will transition into establishing budgets based
on fiscal years.

The biggest deficit plug will come from privatizing parking
services, which the city manager’s office says will bring in $40 million
in one-time revenue and additional revenue over 30 years as part of a
long-term contract. About $21 million of the initial lump-sum payment will be
used to close the 2013 budget deficit.

In the past, Councilman P.G. Sittenfeld voiced concerns
about privatizing parking: “I’ll await more details, but
it seems penny-wise and pound-foolish to forgo a steady revenue stream
for a lump-sum payment. Cincinnati needs a structurally balanced budget
and can’t keep relying on one-time sources. Places like Chicago and
Indianapolis have seen their parking rates more than double following
privatization — that’s a bad deal for citizens, and something we don’t
need while we’re experiencing an urban renaissance.”

Another concern is whether the city’s current parking
employees will be laid off if parking services are sold. Dohoney said
the deal for privatization will require the winning bidder to interview
all American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees
(AFSCME) workers. Full-time workers who do not join the winning bidder will be
hired in other parts of the city government. “No AFSCME employee will be
placed on the street if they are full-time as a result of this effort,”
Dohoney claimed.

The rest of the deficit plug will come in cuts, cost shifting, savings,
revenue, embedded growth and one-time sources. Among these, notable
items include the elimination of the Mounted Patrol for the Cincinnati Police
Department (CPD) and a $610,770 reduction in Human Services Funding. A few departments and programs, including the CPD, will face
further minor cuts.

The city manager’s office claims the changes in the budget
are necessary mostly due to changes at the state level. Specifically,
the state government cut the Local Government Fund by 50 percent and
eliminated the tangible personal property tax reimbursement and estate
tax; altogether, losing these sources of revenue cost Cincinnati $22.2
million in the 2013 budget.

Facing the large deficit, Dohoney said he wanted to avoid across-the-board cuts and
other major cuts to growth and investment programs: “You’re not competitive
if that’s your approach.”

The budget also includes some
spending increases. The Focus 52 Program will focus on redevelopment
projects in Cincinnati’s 52 neighborhoods. If it’s successful, the new
program will “grow the city’s revenue base, create new jobs and/or
increase the population of the city,” according to the city manager’s
office.

In other budget news, the city manager will also send out
the Tentative Tax Budget proposal, which sets the millage rate for the
operating property tax. That proposal seeks to raise the millage rate
from 5.9 mills to 6.1 mills, which will provide an estimated $31 million
in revenue, up from $23.5 million. For a $100,000 residential property,
that means a tax hike of $46.

City and county budgets moving forward, Cincinnati master plan approved, few voted twice

Screw Cyber Monday; it’s budget day! The Hamilton County
Board of Commissioners is set to vote on its 2013 budget today. The
initial vote was delayed when commissioners couldn’t all agree on the full details. In City Council, a memo revealed the budget should be unveiled today. One part of the Cincinnati proposal has already been hinted at by a previous memo from the city manager: privatized parking.

On Wednesday, City Council approved Plan Cincinnati.
The master plan, which is the first the city has undertaken in 32
years, creates short-, medium- and long-term goals. Built largely on
public feedback, the plan emphasizes Cincinnati’s urban core with new
transportation programs, community health initiatives, new housing
options and more. CityBeat previously covered the plan in-depth here.

In Hamilton County, 81 people voted twice.
The votes, which involved provisional ballots, only reflects about 0.2
percent of the county’s vote, but it shows some of the confusion and
inefficiencies of modern elections. One particular problem is some
elderly voters cast absentee ballots before the election and then filed
provisional ballots on Election Day.

Some education advocates are worried state education agencies won't have the proper time and resources to implement HB 555.
A few provisions will have to be ready by mid-2013, which some
advocates see as too little time; but the president of the Ohio Board of
Education remains confident. HB 555 will radically reform the state’s
school report card system, which evaluates and grades schools. Some state
officials are worried the new standards, which will be measured in part
by new standardized tests, will be too tough. An early simulation of the new report cards
in May showed Cincinnati Public Schools dropping from the second-best
rating of “Effective” under the current system to a D-, with 23 schools
flunking and Walnut Hills High School retaining its top mark with an A.

State Medicaid costs are rising, but more slowly.
The slowdown may be partially attributed to Gov. John Kasich’s reforms
of the program, which is one of the most prominent costs in state
budgets around the country.

Gas prices in Ohio have gone up
in the last week. The prices were higher than they were in 2011, and
some experts say instability in the Middle East is to blame.

Ohio is looking good for a revival of the pharmaceutical industry.
That’s good news since the industry could be on the cusp of a “golden
era of renewed productivity and prosperity,” according to
PricewaterhouseCoopers.

Unfortunately for the pharmaceutical industry, the next generation of water pollution could be flushed drugs.

Science has been hard at work in 2012. Here
is a list of the seven greatest engineering innovations of the year.
The list includes the world’s largest semi-submersible vessel, which can
be used as an offshore dock, and a carbon-neutral office building,
which is arguably the most sustainable workplace ever.

City Council took a contentious vote on Thursday to give the city manager a pay raise and a bonus.

Those in favor of the 10 percent raise and $35,000 bonus
for Milton Dohoney say he is underpaid, has done a great job for the city
and has gone five years without a merit raise. Those opposed say it’s bad timing and sends the wrong
message when many city workers have also gone years without a pay
increase.

Dohoney was hired in August 2006. He hasn’t received a
merit raise since 2007, but has collected bonuses and cost of living
adjustments over the years. He currently makes about $232,000 and the
raise would bump that up to $255,000. Dohoney made $185,000 when he started the job.

Council approved the raise on a 6-2 vote, with councilmen Christopher Smitherman and Chris Seelbach voting against it.

Before the vote, Mayor Mark Mallory lauded the manager,
saying he set high expectations and didn’t expect Dohoney to meet them,
but the manager exceeded all of them.

“To do anything other than that
(approve the raise) is a backhanded slap in the face and actually a
statement that we want the manager gone,” Mallory said. “We are going to
give him a raise. And from where I sit we’re not giving him a big
enough raise.”

The raise came from a performance review conducted by
Democratic council members Yvette Simpson, Cecil Thomas and sole council
Republican Charlie Winburn.

Winburn said the city manager’s financial management
system is impeccable, Dohoney has pushed economic development, he has
expanded the tax base and made sacrifices by not receiving a raise for
the previous five years.

Other members of council pointed out that Dohoney isn’t the only city employee who has gone a while without a raise.

“For me, look, 4 years ago I turned down a job at Google
where I’d be making a hell of a lot more money,” Councilman P.G.
Sittenfeld told 700WLW radio host Scott Sloan. “This is public service.
This is already the city’s highest-paid employee.”

Sittenfeld missed the council meeting Thursday afternoon because he was out of town on a personal matter, according to an aide.

Sittenfeld and others have raised questions over whether
it is wise to give Dohoney a raise and bonus when the city faces an
estimated $34 million budget deficit. Councilman Wendell Young said the
raise would not hurt the budget.

Opponents also argued that it would look bad to give the
manager a raise when other city employees are dealing with wage freezes.
Police, for instance, agreed during contact negotiations this year to a
two-year wage freeze. Though they received a raise in 2009.

Smitherman said city employee unions may keep that in mind during upcoming negotiations.

"Unions are going to remember this council extended a $35,000 bonus to the city manager.”

Abortion-rights supporters pushed against
a bill that will kill some funds for Planned Parenthood in Ohio yesterday. The bill would shift $2 million
in federal funds, which legally can’t be used for abortions, from
Planned Parenthood to other family services. An Ohio House committee will hold hearings and
possibly vote on the bill later today. Planned Parenthood has been
a target for anti-abortion activists all around the nation in recent
years, even though abortions only make up 3 percent of its services.

The election is over for us, but it’s not quite over for Ohio Secretary of State Jon Husted. A court ruled yesterday that Husted was in the wrong
when he directed a last-minute change to Ohio's provisional ballot rules. U.S. District Judge Algenon Marbley wrote that the rules,
which shifted the burden of identification for provisional ballots from
poll workers to voters, were “a flagrant violation of a state elections
law.” Husted will appeal the ruling. For many voter activists, the
ruling comes as no surprise. Husted and Republicans have
been heavily criticized for how they handled the lead-up to the election.

The Ohio House will vote on legislation
to regulate puppy mills. Ohio is currently known as one of the worst
states for puppy mills and regulations surrounding them. The Humane
Society of the United States supports extra limits on Ohio’s puppy
mills. CityBeat previously covered the issue and how it enables Ohio dog auctions.

John Cranley is running for mayor.
Cranley, who served on City Council between 2001 and 2007, promises to
bring “bring fresh energy and new ideas to the mayor's office.” One of
those ideas could be opposition to the streetcar, which Cranley has been
against in the past. Former mayor Charlie Luken will be the honorary
chairman of Cranley’s campaign, which will officially launch at an event in January.

The Ohio Department of Development and Port of Greater Cincinnati Development Authority will meet on Dec. 14 to discuss how to finance the Brent Spence Bridge. The Port Authority suggested tolls
to help pay for the bridge project, which has been labeled the region’s
top transportation priority; but critics say an unelected agency should
not directly impose costs on the public without some recourse.

Ohio will let the federal government run the state’s health care exchange.
Under the Affordable Care Act — also known as Obamacare — states must
decide by Friday to self-manage or let the federal government manage
exchanges, which are subsidized markets that pits different insurance
plans in direct competition within a state. The move comes as no
surprise from Gov. John Kasich and his administration, which have
opposed Obamacare since it passed in 2010. But support for repealing Obamacare is plummeting, a new poll found.

A state legislator introduced a long-expected plan to reform Ohio’s school report card system.
The bill will shift school grading from the current
system, which grades schools with labels ranging from “excellent with
distinction” to “academic emergency,” to a stricter A-to-F system. A simulation of the new system back in May showed Cincinnati Public School dropping in grades and 23 of its schools flunking.

After a strange bout of Ohio Supreme Court races that
continued a trend of candidates with Irish-sounding names winning, some
policymakers are considering reforming campaigning rules for the Ohio Supreme Court. The proposed reforms would allow candidates to speak more freely and show political party affiliation on the ballot.

A true American hero: A Hamilton man took personal injuries from a car accident to avoid hitting a cat.

Ever wish political pundits were held accountable for their completely inane, incorrect predictions? A new Tumblr account does just that.

OTR more popular, E.W. Scripps' record revenues and tax break, GOP against abortion

People are feeling better about downtown and Over-the-Rhine, according to a new survey. Out of respondents who said they visited downtown, about 83 percent said their opinion of Over-the-Rhine was more favorable now than it was in the last year. Bars and parks topped activities, while dining and events on Fountain Square topped attractions.

The E.W. Scripps Company posted its best TV revenues ever
thanks to the presidential election. The company’s consolidated
revenues rose 31 percent to $220 million. The company recently netted a $750,000 tax break from Cincinnati City Council to hire for 125 new local jobs and retain 184 current employees.

Ohio Republicans are renewing their anti-abortion agenda.
Much to the dismay of pro-choice groups, Gov. John Kasich appointed two
people from Ohio Right to Life to important positions, and the Ohio
Senate is now looking into a new version of the heartbeat bill. Starting
with a hearing Wednesday, Ohio Republicans will also move to defund Planned Parenthood.

In his post-election presser, Ohio Secretary of State Jon Husted suggested basing Ohio’s electoral vote on congressional districts.
Due to how Republicans redrew district boundaries, that would have
given Mitt Romney most of Ohio’s electoral votes even though Romney lost
the popular vote. Districts were redrawn by the Republican-controlled
process to give Republicans an advantage in congressional races. The
First Congressional District, which includes Cincinnati, was redrawn to
include Republican-leaning Warren County, which shifted the district in
favor of Republicans and diluted Cincinnati’s Democratic-leaning
urbanites. The proposal seems like another attempt at voter suppression
from a secretary of state that has been heavily criticized for how he and his party handled the run-up to the election.

A new study found Ohio may be one of the worst states to retire in.
The state did poorly in terms of property crime and life expectancy of
seniors, but it was found to have good economic conditions, a
relatively low tax burden and lower-than-average cost of living.

Ohioans’ food stamp benefits will drop by $50 a month next year. The change is coming due to a shift in how the federal government calculates utility expenditures for food stamp recipients.

Ohio’s Third Grade Guarantee, which requires holding back
third-graders who do not meet state reading standards, now has some research
supporting it. A new study
found girls who struggle to read early on are more likely to become
teen mothers. However, other research shows holding kids back hurts more
than helps. After reviewing decades of research, the National
Association of School Psychologists found grade retention has “deleterious long-term effects,” both academically and socially.

President says staff will go on to do “amazing things”

Just a day after securing his next four-year term, President Barack Obama had a heartfelt moment with campaign volunteers in Chicago. While thanking his staff, Obama said they were better than he was when he compared their experiences and accomplishments to what he did as a community organizer in the 1980s. He said he had no doubt his staff would go on to do “amazing things.”

The Obama team has gained fame for its highly advanced campaign. It used a team of data crunchers for almost every decision, which TIME covered in a post-election look.

Is the race for Ohio secretary of state already underway? Ohio
Sen. Nina Turner, who is considering a run against Secretary of State
Jon Husted in 2014, says she will introduce legislation to protect voters against Republican efforts to limit ballot access. She also criticized Husted for how he handled the 2012 election, which CityBeat covered here. Husted responded by asking Turner to “dial down political rhetoric.”

Build Our New Bridge Now, an organization dedicated to building the Brent Spence Bridge, says the best approach is private financing.
The organization claims a public-private partnership is the only way to
get the bridge built by 2018, rather than 2022. But critics are worried
the partnership and private financing would lead to tolls.

The Hamilton County Board of Commissioners threw out
a Metropolitan Sewer District competitive bidding policy yesterday. The
policy, which was originally passed by City Council, was called unfair
and illegal by county commissioners due to apprenticeship requirements and rules that favor contractors within city limits. Councilman Chris Seelbach is now pushing for compromise for the rules.

Three Cincinnati-area hospitals are among the best in the nation,
according to new rankings from Healthgrades. The winners: Christ
Hospital, Bethesda North Hospital and St. Elizabeth Healthcare-Edgewood.

Democrat David Mann, former Cincinnati mayor and congressman, may re-enter politics with an attempt at City Council.

In its 2013 State of Tobacco report, the American Lung Association gave Ohio an F for anti-smoking policies.
The organization said the state is doing a poor job by relying
exclusively on federal money for its $3.3 million anti-tobacco program.
The Centers for Disease Control says Ohio should be spending $145
million.

The Air Force is gearing up for massive spending cuts currently set to kick in March. The cuts will likely affect Wright-Patterson Air Force Base.

Dennis Kucinich, who used to serve in the U.S. House of Representatives, will soon appear on Fox News as a regular contributor.

Ohio Secretary of State Jon Husted is pushing local election officials to begin investigating legitimate cases of voter fraud or suppression. He also vowed to continue pushing for uniform voting hours and redistricting. During election season, Husted developed a bad reputation around the nation for suppressive tactics, which CityBeat covered here, but it seems he’s now taking a more moderate tone.

It looks like in-person early voting didn’t rev up the “African-American … voter turnout machine,” as Franklin County GOP Chairman Doug Preisse claimed, after all. New numbers show in-person early voting was

With voter approval, Washington state embraces new freedoms

This morning, social conservatives around the world dug
themselves into Armageddon-resistant bunkers, preparing for what they
knew was coming. Today, marijuana and same-sex marriage were
being legalized in Washington state.

But the bunkers may have been a waste of time and money,
considering the end of the world didn’t occur. In fact, it seems like a lot
of people are happy with the legal changes, which voters approved on
Nov. 6.

From the perspective of this CityBeat writer, same-sex marriage would be great. It’s something I wrote about extensively before (“The Evolution of Equality,”
Nov. 28 issue). As a refresher, not only does same-sex marriage bring a
host of benefits to same-sex couples, but it also produces economic
benefits for everyone. A recent study from Bill
LaFayette, founder of Regionomics LLC, found that legalizing gay
marriage would grow Ohio’s gross domestic product, which measures
economic worth, by $100-$126 million within three years.

Marijuana has similar benefits. Not only does it give
people the freedom to put a relatively harmless plant into their bodies,
but it also provides a big boon to state budgets. For Washington, it’s
estimated the marijuana tax will bring in as much as $500 million a
year.

Legalization also creates jobs and economic growth as
businesses pop up to sell the product and customers buy the plant to
toke up. Washington State’s Office of Financial Management estimates the
marijuana market will be worth about $1 billion in the state.
Considering the state is about 2 percent of the U.S. population, that
could be extrapolated to indicate a potential $50 billion nationwide
market.

Still, public use of marijuana and driving while
intoxicated remain illegal. In a press conference Wednesday, Seattle
City Attorney Pete Holmes said, “If you're smoking in plain public view, you're
subject to a ticket. … Initiative 502 uses the alcohol model. If
drinking in public is disallowed, so is smoking marijuana in public.”

The Seattle Police Department (SPD) seems a bit
friendlier. In an email today, SPD told officers to only give verbal
warnings until further notice. The warnings should essentially tell
people to take their marijuana inside, or, as SPD spokesperson Jonah
Spangenthal-Lee put it on the SPD Blotter,
“The police department believes that, under state law, you may
responsibly get baked, order some pizzas and enjoy a ‘Lord of the Rings’
marathon in the privacy of your own home, if you want to.”

The Washington law also faces possible federal resistance.
Even though the state legalized pot, the drug is still illegal under
federal law. That means the feds can still shut down marijuana
businesses and arrest buyers, just like they have with legal medical marijuana
dispensaries in the past.

In fact, maybe the limitations are what’s keeping the
apocalypse at bay. Maybe social conservatives will get to make use of
those bunkers if the rest of the country catches on to Washington’s
example.

America is a country at war. While the war in Iraq
ostensibly drew down in December 2011, the United States has been
quagmired in a war in Afghanistan for more than a decade.

But we're also in the midst of a number of other wars — cultural wars. It started with Nixon’s War on Drugs, then quickly escalated.

President Barack Obama’s environmental regulations on coal
mining caused proponents to claim he had declared a War on Coal. The
Affordable Care Act’s mandate that companies pay for employee
contraception caused many faith groups to claim a War on Religion.

Statements from Republican politicians about “legitimate
rape” and “binders full of women” caused some Democrats to claim the GOP
had declared a War on Women.

And the ever-vigilant conspiracists news hounds at FOX
News have exposed a scheme by Jesus-hating liberals to wage a War on
Christmas for trying to remove constitutionally questionable dolled-up
trees and pastoral scenes of babies in unsuitable barn-life cribbery
faith-based displays from public property.

But by far the most heinous altercation being waged
originated with Republican Ohio Senate President Tom Niehaus, who has
declared a War on Babies.

As first reported by The Enquirer, conservative groups
this week sent out a press release vilifying Niehaus for killing tons of babies in a
mass effort to wipe out the state’s youth population a 17-month old bill
that would give Ohio one of the strictest abortion laws in the nation.

Niehaus moved the so-called Heartbeat Bill — which would
ban all abortions after the first detectable fetal heartbeat — from the
Health Committee to the Rules and Reference Committee to avoid a forced
vote on the legislation. He also removed staunch anti-abortion Senators
Keith Faber and Shannon Jones from that committee.

“I’m shocked by Tom Niehaus’ war on pro-life women,” wroteLori
Viars in the news release. Viars is the vice president of Warren County
Right to Life and vice chair of Warren County Republican Party.

Viars called for Republicans to remove Niehaus from Senate
leadership. Niehaus is term-limited and will not continue on in office
after this year.

Niehaus blamed Romney’s loss for his decision to kill the
bill, saying that the Republican’s victory would have increased the
likelihood of a U.S. Supreme Court lineup that would uphold it against a
likely challenge.

City Manager's 2013 budget proposal must be approved by council, mayor

City Manager Milton Dohoney Jr. unveiled his 2013 budget plan at a press conference today. The proposal, which must be approved by City Council and
the mayor, seeks to close a $34 million deficit while avoiding major cuts
and layoffs. The proposed budget will only set the city’s course until
mid-June, when the city will transition into establishing budgets based
on fiscal years.

The biggest deficit plug will come from privatizing parking
services, which the city manager’s office says will bring in $40 million
in one-time revenue and additional revenue over 30 years as part of a
long-term contract. About $21 million of the initial lump-sum payment will be
used to close the 2013 budget deficit.

In the past, Councilman P.G. Sittenfeld voiced concerns
about privatizing parking: “I’ll await more details, but
it seems penny-wise and pound-foolish to forgo a steady revenue stream
for a lump-sum payment. Cincinnati needs a structurally balanced budget
and can’t keep relying on one-time sources. Places like Chicago and
Indianapolis have seen their parking rates more than double following
privatization — that’s a bad deal for citizens, and something we don’t
need while we’re experiencing an urban renaissance.”

Another concern is whether the city’s current parking
employees will be laid off if parking services are sold. Dohoney said
the deal for privatization will require the winning bidder to interview
all American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees
(AFSCME) workers. Full-time workers who do not join the winning bidder will be
hired in other parts of the city government. “No AFSCME employee will be
placed on the street if they are full-time as a result of this effort,”
Dohoney claimed.

The rest of the deficit plug will come in cuts, cost shifting, savings,
revenue, embedded growth and one-time sources. Among these, notable
items include the elimination of the Mounted Patrol for the Cincinnati Police
Department (CPD) and a $610,770 reduction in Human Services Funding. A few departments and programs, including the CPD, will face
further minor cuts.

The city manager’s office claims the changes in the budget
are necessary mostly due to changes at the state level. Specifically,
the state government cut the Local Government Fund by 50 percent and
eliminated the tangible personal property tax reimbursement and estate
tax; altogether, losing these sources of revenue cost Cincinnati $22.2
million in the 2013 budget.

Facing the large deficit, Dohoney said he wanted to avoid across-the-board cuts and
other major cuts to growth and investment programs: “You’re not competitive
if that’s your approach.”

The budget also includes some
spending increases. The Focus 52 Program will focus on redevelopment
projects in Cincinnati’s 52 neighborhoods. If it’s successful, the new
program will “grow the city’s revenue base, create new jobs and/or
increase the population of the city,” according to the city manager’s
office.

In other budget news, the city manager will also send out
the Tentative Tax Budget proposal, which sets the millage rate for the
operating property tax. That proposal seeks to raise the millage rate
from 5.9 mills to 6.1 mills, which will provide an estimated $31 million
in revenue, up from $23.5 million. For a $100,000 residential property,
that means a tax hike of $46.

City and county budgets moving forward, Cincinnati master plan approved, few voted twice

Screw Cyber Monday; it’s budget day! The Hamilton County
Board of Commissioners is set to vote on its 2013 budget today. The
initial vote was delayed when commissioners couldn’t all agree on the full details. In City Council, a memo revealed the budget should be unveiled today. One part of the Cincinnati proposal has already been hinted at by a previous memo from the city manager: privatized parking.

On Wednesday, City Council approved Plan Cincinnati.
The master plan, which is the first the city has undertaken in 32
years, creates short-, medium- and long-term goals. Built largely on
public feedback, the plan emphasizes Cincinnati’s urban core with new
transportation programs, community health initiatives, new housing
options and more. CityBeat previously covered the plan in-depth here.

In Hamilton County, 81 people voted twice.
The votes, which involved provisional ballots, only reflects about 0.2
percent of the county’s vote, but it shows some of the confusion and
inefficiencies of modern elections. One particular problem is some
elderly voters cast absentee ballots before the election and then filed
provisional ballots on Election Day.

Some education advocates are worried state education agencies won't have the proper time and resources to implement HB 555.
A few provisions will have to be ready by mid-2013, which some
advocates see as too little time; but the president of the Ohio Board of
Education remains confident. HB 555 will radically reform the state’s
school report card system, which evaluates and grades schools. Some state
officials are worried the new standards, which will be measured in part
by new standardized tests, will be too tough. An early simulation of the new report cards
in May showed Cincinnati Public Schools dropping from the second-best
rating of “Effective” under the current system to a D-, with 23 schools
flunking and Walnut Hills High School retaining its top mark with an A.

State Medicaid costs are rising, but more slowly.
The slowdown may be partially attributed to Gov. John Kasich’s reforms
of the program, which is one of the most prominent costs in state
budgets around the country.

Gas prices in Ohio have gone up
in the last week. The prices were higher than they were in 2011, and
some experts say instability in the Middle East is to blame.

Ohio is looking good for a revival of the pharmaceutical industry.
That’s good news since the industry could be on the cusp of a “golden
era of renewed productivity and prosperity,” according to
PricewaterhouseCoopers.

Unfortunately for the pharmaceutical industry, the next generation of water pollution could be flushed drugs.

Science has been hard at work in 2012. Here
is a list of the seven greatest engineering innovations of the year.
The list includes the world’s largest semi-submersible vessel, which can
be used as an offshore dock, and a carbon-neutral office building,
which is arguably the most sustainable workplace ever.

City Council took a contentious vote on Thursday to give the city manager a pay raise and a bonus.

Those in favor of the 10 percent raise and $35,000 bonus
for Milton Dohoney say he is underpaid, has done a great job for the city
and has gone five years without a merit raise. Those opposed say it’s bad timing and sends the wrong
message when many city workers have also gone years without a pay
increase.

Dohoney was hired in August 2006. He hasn’t received a
merit raise since 2007, but has collected bonuses and cost of living
adjustments over the years. He currently makes about $232,000 and the
raise would bump that up to $255,000. Dohoney made $185,000 when he started the job.

Council approved the raise on a 6-2 vote, with councilmen Christopher Smitherman and Chris Seelbach voting against it.

Before the vote, Mayor Mark Mallory lauded the manager,
saying he set high expectations and didn’t expect Dohoney to meet them,
but the manager exceeded all of them.

“To do anything other than that
(approve the raise) is a backhanded slap in the face and actually a
statement that we want the manager gone,” Mallory said. “We are going to
give him a raise. And from where I sit we’re not giving him a big
enough raise.”

The raise came from a performance review conducted by
Democratic council members Yvette Simpson, Cecil Thomas and sole council
Republican Charlie Winburn.

Winburn said the city manager’s financial management
system is impeccable, Dohoney has pushed economic development, he has
expanded the tax base and made sacrifices by not receiving a raise for
the previous five years.

Other members of council pointed out that Dohoney isn’t the only city employee who has gone a while without a raise.

“For me, look, 4 years ago I turned down a job at Google
where I’d be making a hell of a lot more money,” Councilman P.G.
Sittenfeld told 700WLW radio host Scott Sloan. “This is public service.
This is already the city’s highest-paid employee.”

Sittenfeld missed the council meeting Thursday afternoon because he was out of town on a personal matter, according to an aide.

Sittenfeld and others have raised questions over whether
it is wise to give Dohoney a raise and bonus when the city faces an
estimated $34 million budget deficit. Councilman Wendell Young said the
raise would not hurt the budget.

Opponents also argued that it would look bad to give the
manager a raise when other city employees are dealing with wage freezes.
Police, for instance, agreed during contact negotiations this year to a
two-year wage freeze. Though they received a raise in 2009.

Smitherman said city employee unions may keep that in mind during upcoming negotiations.

"Unions are going to remember this council extended a $35,000 bonus to the city manager.”

Abortion-rights supporters pushed against
a bill that will kill some funds for Planned Parenthood in Ohio yesterday. The bill would shift $2 million
in federal funds, which legally can’t be used for abortions, from
Planned Parenthood to other family services. An Ohio House committee will hold hearings and
possibly vote on the bill later today. Planned Parenthood has been
a target for anti-abortion activists all around the nation in recent
years, even though abortions only make up 3 percent of its services.

The election is over for us, but it’s not quite over for Ohio Secretary of State Jon Husted. A court ruled yesterday that Husted was in the wrong
when he directed a last-minute change to Ohio's provisional ballot rules. U.S. District Judge Algenon Marbley wrote that the rules,
which shifted the burden of identification for provisional ballots from
poll workers to voters, were “a flagrant violation of a state elections
law.” Husted will appeal the ruling. For many voter activists, the
ruling comes as no surprise. Husted and Republicans have
been heavily criticized for how they handled the lead-up to the election.

The Ohio House will vote on legislation
to regulate puppy mills. Ohio is currently known as one of the worst
states for puppy mills and regulations surrounding them. The Humane
Society of the United States supports extra limits on Ohio’s puppy
mills. CityBeat previously covered the issue and how it enables Ohio dog auctions.

John Cranley is running for mayor.
Cranley, who served on City Council between 2001 and 2007, promises to
bring “bring fresh energy and new ideas to the mayor's office.” One of
those ideas could be opposition to the streetcar, which Cranley has been
against in the past. Former mayor Charlie Luken will be the honorary
chairman of Cranley’s campaign, which will officially launch at an event in January.

The Ohio Department of Development and Port of Greater Cincinnati Development Authority will meet on Dec. 14 to discuss how to finance the Brent Spence Bridge. The Port Authority suggested tolls
to help pay for the bridge project, which has been labeled the region’s
top transportation priority; but critics say an unelected agency should
not directly impose costs on the public without some recourse.

Ohio will let the federal government run the state’s health care exchange.
Under the Affordable Care Act — also known as Obamacare — states must
decide by Friday to self-manage or let the federal government manage
exchanges, which are subsidized markets that pits different insurance
plans in direct competition within a state. The move comes as no
surprise from Gov. John Kasich and his administration, which have
opposed Obamacare since it passed in 2010. But support for repealing Obamacare is plummeting, a new poll found.

A state legislator introduced a long-expected plan to reform Ohio’s school report card system.
The bill will shift school grading from the current
system, which grades schools with labels ranging from “excellent with
distinction” to “academic emergency,” to a stricter A-to-F system. A simulation of the new system back in May showed Cincinnati Public School dropping in grades and 23 of its schools flunking.

After a strange bout of Ohio Supreme Court races that
continued a trend of candidates with Irish-sounding names winning, some
policymakers are considering reforming campaigning rules for the Ohio Supreme Court. The proposed reforms would allow candidates to speak more freely and show political party affiliation on the ballot.

A true American hero: A Hamilton man took personal injuries from a car accident to avoid hitting a cat.

Ever wish political pundits were held accountable for their completely inane, incorrect predictions? A new Tumblr account does just that.

OTR more popular, E.W. Scripps' record revenues and tax break, GOP against abortion

People are feeling better about downtown and Over-the-Rhine, according to a new survey. Out of respondents who said they visited downtown, about 83 percent said their opinion of Over-the-Rhine was more favorable now than it was in the last year. Bars and parks topped activities, while dining and events on Fountain Square topped attractions.

The E.W. Scripps Company posted its best TV revenues ever
thanks to the presidential election. The company’s consolidated
revenues rose 31 percent to $220 million. The company recently netted a $750,000 tax break from Cincinnati City Council to hire for 125 new local jobs and retain 184 current employees.

Ohio Republicans are renewing their anti-abortion agenda.
Much to the dismay of pro-choice groups, Gov. John Kasich appointed two
people from Ohio Right to Life to important positions, and the Ohio
Senate is now looking into a new version of the heartbeat bill. Starting
with a hearing Wednesday, Ohio Republicans will also move to defund Planned Parenthood.

In his post-election presser, Ohio Secretary of State Jon Husted suggested basing Ohio’s electoral vote on congressional districts.
Due to how Republicans redrew district boundaries, that would have
given Mitt Romney most of Ohio’s electoral votes even though Romney lost
the popular vote. Districts were redrawn by the Republican-controlled
process to give Republicans an advantage in congressional races. The
First Congressional District, which includes Cincinnati, was redrawn to
include Republican-leaning Warren County, which shifted the district in
favor of Republicans and diluted Cincinnati’s Democratic-leaning
urbanites. The proposal seems like another attempt at voter suppression
from a secretary of state that has been heavily criticized for how he and his party handled the run-up to the election.

A new study found Ohio may be one of the worst states to retire in.
The state did poorly in terms of property crime and life expectancy of
seniors, but it was found to have good economic conditions, a
relatively low tax burden and lower-than-average cost of living.

Ohioans’ food stamp benefits will drop by $50 a month next year. The change is coming due to a shift in how the federal government calculates utility expenditures for food stamp recipients.

Ohio’s Third Grade Guarantee, which requires holding back
third-graders who do not meet state reading standards, now has some research
supporting it. A new study
found girls who struggle to read early on are more likely to become
teen mothers. However, other research shows holding kids back hurts more
than helps. After reviewing decades of research, the National
Association of School Psychologists found grade retention has “deleterious long-term effects,” both academically and socially.

President says staff will go on to do “amazing things”

Just a day after securing his next four-year term, President Barack Obama had a heartfelt moment with campaign volunteers in Chicago. While thanking his staff, Obama said they were better than he was when he compared their experiences and accomplishments to what he did as a community organizer in the 1980s. He said he had no doubt his staff would go on to do “amazing things.”

The Obama team has gained fame for its highly advanced campaign. It used a team of data crunchers for almost every decision, which TIME covered in a post-election look.